'You're never there': Manu admits he was forced to close Sydney restaurant L'Etoile because he was too busy with MKR commitments
By Kate Lyons
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Manu Feildel is one of the best-known chefs in the country, but it seems his fame might have been the downfall of his restaurant L’Etoile in Paddington.
The My Kitchen Rules judge was forced to shut down his Sydney restaurant last month after six years of business.
While the chef did not explicitly blame MKR for his restaurant’s closure, he said that 2013 had been a ‘nightmare year’ with too much on his plate.
Celebrity chef: Manu Feildel, left, with MKR co-star Pete Evans, has had to close his Sydney restaurant, L'Etoile because of his hectic filming schedule
The father-of-one filmed season five of My Kitchen Rules, ran his Sydney restaurant and just last week released a cookbook, French for Everyone.
‘I can’t believe the times people would say, “Manu, you’re never there [at L’Etoile].” And then when I was there people would say, “What the heck are you doing here? How do you have the time?” Doing both was difficult,’ he told The Daily Telegraph.
He said that new restaurants nearby, such as Matt Moran’s Chiswick, had hurt his business and he could no longer afford to stay open.
‘We had six years – four of them were good. The first year was tough, then we had four great years making money. Then all of a sudden there was no traffic and we couldn’t make enough to survive,’ he said.
Manu sold his Kings Cross restaurant, Aperitif, in early 2012, blaming the changing nature of the suburb for the restaurant's dwindling profits. The Sydney Morning Herald reported the chef's frustration the Kings Cross visitors wanted to drink, not dine.
The closure of L'Etoile is the latest in a series of closures of elite restaurants in Sydney in the last few years, with famed restaurants Guillaume, Bentley, Claude’s, and Universal among those that have shut their doors.
L’Etoile showcased the cuisine of Manu’s native France, down to printing its menu in French with an English translation underneath.
Popular dishes included scallop sausage in crustacean bisque, steak with a pepper and cognac sauce, and trout with zucchini flowers filled with crab mousse.
The luxury restaurant charged $22 for entrees, $37 for mains, and $15 for desserts, which included crème brulee and lemon meringue tart with raspberry and rhubarb sorbet.
Closed its doors: Manu was forced to close his Paddington restaurant, L'Etoile
On the shelf: Manu has also been hard at work producing his new cookbook, French For Everyone
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brianwave4000, Sydney, Australia, 1 day ago
Manu is being a tad disingenuous. I live less than 200 mtrs away. His venture failed because A. Boring menu- He underestimated local sophistication. B. Too expensive for a lack lustre setting. C. No parking. D. His TV exposure reveals a rather average IQ. Yet another badly accented French chef seeking a media leg-up in Sydney. Still, that extra dosh can't be bad,so, good luck Mate .